October 28, 2006
Empire State Building Jumper Wants Charges Dropped
Heh. Jeb Corliss, who tried to jump off the Empire State Building in April, was in court yesterday, asking that the charges be dropped. Corliss, a "renowned daredevil," wore a fatsuit to hide his parachute and video camera when he rode the elevator up to the 86th floor. There, he changed and tried to jump off the side, freaking out tourists. Security was able to restrain him because someone called in a tip and alerted them!
The city charged Corliss with reckless endangerment, but his lawyer, Mark Jay Heller, presented an interesting defense. The NY Times reports:
Further, the lawyer said that the officer were the one who showed "depraved indifference" because they handcuffed him while he was wearing a parachute: “If the parachute opens, the thrust of it would separate him from his limbs."The lawyer, Mark Jay Heller, argued that what his client did was analogous to the case of a New York judge who tried to commit suicide by lying in front of his oven with the gas running. The judge’s conviction for showing depraved indifference to the lives of his neighbors was reduced to a lesser charge in July. The state’s highest court ruled that he acted out of depression, not moral deficiency.
Mr. Heller said that his client, Mr. Corliss, had made more than 1,000 jumps around the world, without hurting anyone. Besides, the lawyer said, there is no law against jumping off a building in New York State.
The judge, Michael Ambrecht, found Heller's argument "very persuasive" and will make a decision in December. Corliss said, "I live in a country whose motto is 'Land of the free.' I don't feel very free here."
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Edit: The judge, Michael Ambrecht, found Heller's argument "very persuasive" and WILL make a decision in December.
Meanwhile, I can't believe it's not a crime to try to jump off the Empire State Building and create a scene. He doesn't feel "free". Boohoo, cry me a river.
There is absolutely no way that Corliss should be convicted of any depraved indifference charge; this is just one more example of abuse of prosecutorial discretion.
The case that the lawyer is referring to is People v. Feingold if anyone is interested; it was a case decided by the Court of Appeals, New York's highest court. I don't think the facts are analogous, but Corliss's actions clearly fall outside the category of depraved indifference.
Thanks, MissPinkKate.
And I have a feeling that this stunt might prompt the state to enact a "no jumping off buildings law."
Interesting idea, Jen. Suicide is apparently against the law (making those who attempt it legally liable in some way), but what about BASE jumping? If the owner of the Empire State Building wanted to jump off himself with a safety device, or offer parachute jumps to the public, why should that be illegal? The state allows bungee jumping, after all.
Along the same lines, if the management at the ESB wants to enforce a "no jumping" or "no climbing" rule on the observation deck, is it up to the state to prosecute? It's a privately-owned building; trespassing is just about the only thing that applies here, and that's hard to prove if the guy bought a ticket for public admission.
None of that changes the fact that this guy is an asshat. A clever one, indeed, but an asshat nonetheless. Even so, you have to cringe at the lost opportunity - if the guy had been able to jump with his vidcam helmet, how cool of a YouTube video would that have been?!
base jumping is so 1996.
Let him jump. Just confuscate his parachute! Now that's real freedom !
So it is depraved indifference to cuff him with a parachute on because if it opens it will tear his limbs off, but it ISN'T depraved indifference for him to ride in an elevator with the parachute on? What exactly would have happened in the enclosed space of an elevator full of tourists if the parachute had opened there?
Not much wind in an elevator, Fuat, I imagine if his parachute opened it would flop to the floor.
Oh, ok. I thought there was something that would propel the parachute out of the bag. Just wind, eh?
I think they actually handcuffed his hands inside the fence, which the rest of his body was on the outside. That's how it appears in the pictures, and that's how they forced him to abort his jump.
He's got a point. If that chute opened for any reason he would have been dismembered.
BrianVan, you're an asshat... or whatever the Fck that means.. anyways Jeb was my bf and remains my best friend.. he just so happens to be the most well spoken, intelligent, happiest, aspiring, hard-working person I have ever met. A true hero for living his dreams and not letting anything stop him. EVER! Not the cripling fear, not idiots like you or even 10ft high suicide bars. He didnt break the law and he made very careful that he wouldnt. he met with lawyers before to talk about what the law REALLY IS.. there is nothing wrong with a professional (actually the best b-jumper on this planet) basejumper fulfilling his dreams, and yes though different than yours, his dream was to jump that building. And he did it so cleverly. Genius. But he was stopped when the police did what they are never suppose to which is touch someone on a 4in ledge 1200ft high up! They were never in any danger.. the only person in danger that day was Jeb. He is my hero, as well as anyone who knows him. He also has bigger dreams than you can imagine so watch out for this heroic figure, he's not done yet.. :-p
The public on the ground below the building was definitely in danger. If the chute didn't open or that camera fell off his helmut in midair, someone could have been injured or killed. It probably would have been the Macys balloon Lidle airplane crash apartment lady.
As a regular user of the city's sidewalks, I really don't appreciate some self-centered daredevil forcing me to have to scan the skies for parachutists jumping off of every building I pass. His inability to recognize the fact that he endangered everyone on the ground beneath him certainly seems like depraved indifference to me.
It's a free country, yes. You have the right to make stupid decisions, and you can expect the consequences of them if you do. He's not a "hero;" He's a self-centered con artist with no regard for his fellow man. No sympathy.
A couple of points:
1. Corliss's conduct was not depraved indifference -- and neither was the officer's.
2. Depraved indifference applies only to a VERY NARROW class of crimes; recklessness is the appropriate classification for Corliss's actions. Prosecutors charge this as a way to try to put defendants away for more time; dumb judges often fall for it. It doesn't look like this one will.
what a spoiled baby
Why would anybody want to jump off one of the tallest buildings in the world anyway ? Is your life that empty, and barron towards where trying to kill yourself becomes the "In thing" to do ! Just plain stupid and now the guy wants to get off . Maybe, Just maybe if you would have pondered this through throughly you wouldn't be in this situation stupid ass!
Sorry but no......people were not in danger. He was going to be opening up on the other side of the street. Over the rooftop of another building. If he had equipment problems, he would've landed on the other building. If his camera came off the helmet on opening (highly unlikely), it too would've landed on the roof.
Also, there is NO way the parachute would have torn his limbs off. Sure it might be windy up there. But there's much more force during opening shock. The way I see it, people not involved with BASE jumping are too scared of everything they don't understand to think straight. The jumper is using that ignorance in his defense. More power to him! I wish him luck.